Association of Space Explorers USA

Professional Forum:Annual Planetary Congress: The annual planetary Congress allows the members to work towards the organization's mission and vision by providing broad and deep professional technical interchanges among the members and attendees. Valuable exchanges of information and expertise are created by astronaut reunions. Presentations are delivered to the general public at the annual Congress. The organization provides online accessible information with weekly interchange through the ASE downlinks. Member/Astronaut appearances at schools and other public forums provide a platform for promoting the benefits of space science and exploration.Astronaut Reunions: ASE organizes and hosts annual European astronaut reunions and biennial astronaut reunions for NASA astronauts in Houston, Texas. The reunions provide networking and professional development opportunities for active government astronauts, former government astronauts and commercial space travelers. Universal Astronaut Insignia: ASE representing the desire of the international community of space travelers to establish a single, commonly recognized insignia for all who fly into space, conceived, designed and approved a universal astronaut insignia. All space travelers who are certified by a recognized space launch provider as having traveled to space are eligible to wear the universal astronaut insignia. The insignia consists of ascending and descending chevrons crowned with a 5-point star, representing the journey to space and the return to Earth. A circlet encompassing the chevrons is added to astronaut insignia awarded for flight into Earth orbit and beyond. Registry of Space Travelers: ASE, exercising its historical role representing the international astronaut community, curates an official, universal Registry of Space Travelers, the recognized official index of individuals who have flown to space and the sequential order in which they flew.

Education: Celebrating Diversity from Space: Operating under a federal grant from the ISS National Laboratory/Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS), ASE recently completed "Celebrating Diversity from Space", an educational program for under-represented youth in Boys & Girls Clubs. Students explored diversity at three levels: 1) EARTH's global diversity for its physical features and human geography; 2) ASTRONAUTS whose diverse backgrounds, experience and expertise are essential for success of ISS; and 3) local COMMUNITY of each Boys & Girls Club, where students celebrated rich diversity among themselves, their neighborhoods and families. All three realms have the common theme - diversity is an essential element of success. The program emphasized hands-on and inquiry-based learning. Each club created a 30-minute video, conveying these core concepts, working directly with astronauts. The ISS National Lab provided two essential assets: 1) wealth of photographs taken by the ISS astronauts as they orbit Earth, showcasing rich complexity; 2) the experiences of astronauts themselves, as diverse crews, working as a team, managing complex tasks, and solving problems with creativity and collaboration. This project built on extensive prior work of "Windows On Earth" to establish the archive of photos and video creation tools. The 10 participating astronauts are members of Association of Space Explorers and have all flown in space.Community Days: At each Planetary Congress, ASE members dedicate a full day for outreach with the local and national communities in the country where the Congress is being hosted. The astronauts and cosmonauts reach thousands of students, teachers, parents, and members of the general public to inspire and promote education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. ASE member astronauts also engage with students and teachers throughout the year in the USA with school and university visits and lectures, as well as via partnerships with other educational organizations.